Leonardo Boff | Liberation Theologies (2025)

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Leonardo Boff | Liberation Theologies (2)Leonardo Boff was born 14 December 1938 inConcórdia,Santa Catarinastate,Brazil. He is atheologianandwriter, known for his active support for the rights of the poor and excluded. He currently serves as Professor Emeritus of Ethics, Philosophy of Religion and Ecology at theRio de Janeiro State University.

Studies as a priest

Boff entered the Franciscan Order in 1959 and was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 1964. He spent the following years studying for a doctorate in theology and philosophy at the University of Munich, which he received in 1970. Boff’s doctoral thesis studied in what measure the church can be a sign of the sacred and the divine in the secular world and in the process of liberation of the oppressed. He has since published his thesis as a book available in German, entitled Die Kirche als Sakrament im Horizont der Welterfahrung .

Liberation theology

He became one of the best known supporters (along withGustavo Gutiérrez) of the earlyLiberation theologians. He was present in the first reflections that sought to articulate indignation againstmiseryand marginalization with promissory discourse of thefaith, leading toLiberation theology. He continues to be a controversial figure in theCatholic Church, primarily for his sharp criticism of the church’s hierarchy, which he sees as “fundamentalist”, but also for his past critical support ofcommunistrégimes.

Political views

He is critical of secular power as well of American foreign policy. He opposed the Iraq War and consideredGeorge W. BushandAriel Sharon’s leadership to be similar to that of “fundamentalistterrorist states.” He also criticizes despotic rulers in theMiddle East: “Those [emirs and kings] are despotic, they do not even have a constitution. Though extremely rich, they maintain the people in poverty.” [1] Boff said in an interview with the site “Comunità Italiana” (November 2001) aboutSeptember 11 attackson theUnited States of America: “For me, the terrorist attack of September 11 represents the shift towards a new humanitarian and world model. The targeted buildings sent a message: a new world civilization cannot be built with the kind of dominating economy (symbolized by the World Trade Center), with the kind of death machine set up (the Pentagon) and with the kind of arrogant politics and producer of many exclusions (…) For me the system and culture of capital began to collapse. They are too destructive.” In the same interview he said that “One of the worst fundamentalisms is that of neoliberalism”.

Break from Roman Catholic Church

Authorities in the Roman Catholic Church did not appreciate his criticism of the church’s leadership. They also felt hishuman rightsadvocacyhad “politicized everything” and accused him ofMarxism. In 1985, theCongregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, directed at that time by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (nowPope Benedict XVI), silenced him for a year for his book Church: Charism and Power . In the interview quoted above he accused Cardinal Ratzinger of “religious terrorism” ( terrorismo religioso ). He was almost silenced again in 1992 byRome, this time to prevent him from participating in the Eco-92Earth SummitinRio de Janeiro, which finally led him to leave theFranciscanreligious order and the priestly ministry. Boff joined the international group of Catholic Scholars who in 2012 issued the Jubilee Declaration on reform of authority in the Catholic Church. [2] For most of his life Boff has worked as a professor in the academic fields oftheology,ethicsandphilosophythroughout Brazil and also as lecturer in many universities abroad such asUniversity of Lisbon,University of Barcelona,University of Lund,University of Oslo,University of Torinoand others.


From WorldCat with links to individual book pages on the WorldCat site:
Works by Leonardo Boff most widely held in libraries:

Introducing liberation theology

Church, charism and power : liberation theology and the institutional church

Jesus Christ liberator : a critical Christology for our time

Salvation and liberation

The maternal face of God : the feminine and its religious expressions

Saint Francis : a model for human liberation

Ecclesiogenesis : the base communities reinvent the church

Faith on the edge : religion and marginalized existence

Trinity and society

When theology listens to the poor

Liberating grace byLeonardo Boff

Liberation theology : from dialogue to confrontation

Ecology & liberation : a new paradigm

Cry of the earth, cry of the poor “In his latest work, the noted Latin American theologian Leonardo Boff extends the intuitions of liberation theology, showing how they contribute to answering urgent questions of poverty and ecological degradation. If faith fails to appreciate the ecological paradigm, Boff argues, it only adds to the crisis and begs for reform.” “Focusing on the threatened Amazon of his native Brazil, Boff traces the economic and metaphysical ties that bind the fate of the rain forests with the fate of the Indians and poor of the land. He shows how liberation theology must join with ecology in reclaiming the dignity of the earth and our sense of a common community. To illustrate to possibilities, Boff turns to resources in Christian spirituality, ancient and modern, including cosmic Christology and the vision of St. Francis of Assisi.”–BOOK JACKET.

Passion of Christ, passion of the world : the facts, their interpretation, and their meaning yesterday and today This classic work of liberation theology explores the meaning of the Cross, both as it has been interpreted in the past and how it should be interpreted in the context of contemporary faith and circumstances. These particular circumstances include the poverty and repression, fear and violence under which so many of the world s people suffer today. In such a world, how can the Cross be understood and preached and what are the consequences of that understanding?

The Lord’s prayer : the prayer of integral liberation

Way of the Cross–way of justice

New evangelization : good news to the poor

Essential care an ethics of human nature This volume draws on myth, science, and many faiths in Boff’s passionate plea for care.

1492-1992 : the voice of the victims

Works aboutLeonardo Boff most widely held in libraries:

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Leonardo Boff | Liberation Theologies (2025)

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